Chris,
I wish you had asked before you built your train table. If you had stopped construction just short of that support post, I would have suggested putting wheels or sliders on your table legs to make the whole table movable. Then you could have eliminated your access hole (because you would pull the table away from the wall to reach the inevitable issues back there) and had more room for scenery, structures or a small rail yard. I would also have suggested that you raise the layout enough to get your dog crate underneath it, even if only when not being used.
Rework doesn't get the job done faster, but might present a more enjoyable finished product.
Chuck
